You're invited to a very special luncheon to celebrate afo's Hatfield Scholarship program. Please join us Wednesday, April 12, at a luncheon at The Oregon Zoo’s brand new Education Center as we introduce our 2017 award recipient.

Our special guest speaker is Oregon’s First Congressional District Representative, Suzanne Bonamici. Education is among Congresswoman Bonamici’s top priorities and one of the reasons she got involved in public service. She is the founder and co-chair of the bipartisan Congressional STEAM Caucus, encouraging innovation and creative thinking by integrating arts and design with Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math education.

Previous Hatfield Scholars will be acknowledged, and the design team will provide tours of the new Education Center.

The Senator Mark O. Hatfield Architectural Award was established in 1998 to annually recognize an Oregon architecture student for his/her design promise and community service. Since 1998, afo has awarded 20 scholarships to exceptional students, many of whom now practice in the northwest and around the world.

Thank you to our sponsors, Opsis Architecture, Catena Consulting Engineers, KPFF, and PAE.

A colorful, “bridge” city showing bridge styles from around the world, a city from the year 2040 complete with rollercoasters to transport its citizen to and fro, and the plan and model for creative adaptive reuse of a historic building in a beloved neighborhood. These are all examples of Architects in Schools projects created by Oregon’s smallest, budding designers.

Picasso is quoted as saying, “Every child is an artist.” And, in the Architects in Schools program, every child learns that they ARE a designer.  They are told that they have the creativity, intelligence and empathy to think about their surroundings, their future and the future of others in our world, and apply what they are learning in school to solve problems creatively - all with the guidance of an architect, engineer or contractor who is passionate about sharing with them.

As a child, I drew understanding of the world from my experiences drawing, painting and dancing. My parents were both teachers, and encouraged me to process life through that creativity.  As an adult, I chose a path to ensure others could have access to education and life experiences that include creative problem solving, thinking outside the box, seeing when you look, and ultimately caring about design that is good for as many people as possible.

I’ve had the great privilege for over a decade of expanding a program that provides such experiences to third through fifth graders around Oregon with the Architects in Schools program. Since 2003, the afo has been able to take the stellar bones of the Architects in Schools program created by the late Portland architect and AIA Fellow, Marjorie Wintermute, and strengthen how they support teachers’ needs to meet new education standards. We added new elements to program training for design professionals, and developed program roots in areas of Oregon outside of the Portland metro area.

With budget cuts to school arts programming over many years, Architects in Schools has offered teachers an avenue to provide creative, hands on learning that integrates with their students’ required lessons in math, science, social studies, language arts and almost any other classroom subject. Currently, 4,500 Oregon students are finishing their sessions with the gracious design professionals working in their classes. 

Please join me at exhibit openings in May and June to see their work on display and celebrate their imaginative, intelligent successes. Schedules for Architects in Schools exhibits can be found in the Of Interest section, below.

Tues, Apr 4, the Urban League of Portland's Career Connections Job Fair invites job seekers and career changers to meet face to face with recruiters from over 80 of the area’s best employers and trade apprenticeship programs. 10am-3pm, DoubleTree Hotel, 1000 NE Multnomah Street, Portland. Details here.

Thur, Apr 6, Holst Gallery hosts an opening reception for Illusions Are More Common Than Changes In Fortune, featuring serigraph prints by Sarah Vaz. 5-7:30pm, Holst Architecture, 110 SE Eighth Avenue, Portland.

April 6 - 9, Portland State University’s Center for Public Interest Design and School of Architecture present "Building on the Common Ground: Structures for Inclusion Conference 2017." The conference brings together the best ideas and practices from around the world for reaching those currently underserved by architecture, including awards for excellence in public interest design by three international networks: Design Corps, Social Economic Environmental Design (SEED), DesignBuildXchange, and Live Projects Network. Includes Public Interest Design Institute, takeaway discussions, and additional engagement opportunities in the Portland region. Portland State University, Shattuck Hall, 1914 SW Park Avenue, Portland. Schedule of events, registration and more information here.

Mon, Apr 10, deadline if you need on-campus housing for Portland State University’s Architecture Summer Immersion Program 2017. Details here.

Thur, Apr 13, UO A&AA Historic Preservation program presents Architecture Department lecturer, Dr. Gabrielle Harlan, an architect and architectural historian with research interests in the use of Native American building types by Anglo architects in the stylistic revivals of the early nineteenth century. 12:30pm, White Stag room 442, Portland, or via video conference at Lawrence Hall room 249, Eugene.

Thur, Apr 13, AIA Portland ForWARD Committee presents Transition, the 5th Annual FastForWARD, celebrating the nature of transition in career, design & art. 6pm doors open, 6:30pm 7 presentations with 20 slides, 20 seconds each. AIA, 403 NW 11th Avenue, Portland.

Sat, Apr 15, American Society of Landscape Architects Oregon presents Strength And Beauty – Resilient Landscapes, 2017 Symposium. 7:30am-6pm, The Sentinel Hotel, Grand Ballroom, 614 SW 11th Avenue, Portland. $30-$225. Details and registration here.

Sat, Apr 15, Architectural Heritage Center’s Old House Revival Tour includes eight beautiful homes displaying a variety of approaches to renovation and decoration. 10am-4pm, various locations, $15-$35. Details and registration here.

Apr 21 - 29, DESIGN WEEK PORTLAND features hundreds of free or low cost Events and Open Houses, conceived and hosted by the creative community. Full schedule here.

Sat, Apr 29, AIA Portland presents Nine Lives, a tour of modern homes including nine unique living environments across seven distinct sites in the Portland metro area. 10am-4pm, various locations, $45. Details and registration here.

Architects in Schools Exhibits coming up in May and June:

PORTLAND: First Thursday, May 4, 5:30-8:30. Ankrom Moisan Architects, 38 NW Davis Street ; DOWA-IBI Group, 907 SW Stark Street; Opsis Architecture, 920 NW 17th Avenue; Pioneer Place, 700 SW 5th Avenue, Portland.
Opening Monday, May 15 with special Architects in Schools Programming on Saturday, May 20, Oregon Museum of Science and Industry Design Lab, 1945 SW Water Avenue, Portland.

EUGENE: Opening First Friday, May 5, 5:30-8pm, Broadway Commerce Center, 44 E. Broadway, and The Octagon, 92 E. Broadway, Eugene.

ASHLAND: Saturday, May 6, 12-4pm, ScienceWorks Museum, 1500 E. Main Street, Ashland.

BEND: Opening First Friday, June 2, 5:30-8:30pm, Liberty Theater, 849 NW Wall Street, Bend.

SALEM: Opening First Wednesday, June 7, 5-7:30pm, CBTwo Architect, 500 Liberty Street, SE, Salem.

All events are free and open to the public unless otherwise noted. Do you have events that would be of interest to Oregon architecture and design fans? Email them to Candice@af-oregon.org by the 25th of the month for inclusion in the following month’s newsletter. afo retains the right to determine all content.

Want more design events? Want to avoid scheduling your event on top of three others? Visit Portland Design Events.